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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24727615">Endings and Beginnings</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/JacobSherlockPeralta/pseuds/JacobSherlockPeralta'>JacobSherlockPeralta</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Abandonment, Angst, Childhood Friends, Crossover, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, M/M, Romance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 02:15:49</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>19,624</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24727615</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/JacobSherlockPeralta/pseuds/JacobSherlockPeralta</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Jake and Gina are childhood best friends and on their 11th birthday the two get invited to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardy where there mischievous nature gets them in trouble and leads them into a magical adventure.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Mischief in Diagon Alley</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jake Peralta and Gina Linetti have lived next door to each other on Lansbury Avenue for eleven years. Both born on the very same day, they have been side by side through every day of their lives. Practically inseparable. But there is something far more extraordinary about these two than meets the eye.</p><p>They are both wizards. Jake lives alone with his muggle Mum, Karen. His father, who is a wizard, left over four years ago to pursue his own personal ambitions and the two haven’t heard from him since.</p><p>Gina also lives alone with her mother, Darlene, but she is a witch and Gina’s father was a muggle who died experimenting with Darlene’s potions one day when Gina was far too young to remember him.</p><p>However, on the 3rd of July, a bright summer's day, that so happens to be their shared 11th birthday, their lives were about to change forever.</p><p>Jake sprinted next door to Gina’s house and knocked on the door loudly. There was no immediate answer so Jake just let himself in as he had done so many times previously.</p><p>He found Gina and her Mum dancing around the kitchen who stopped and turned excitedly when Jake appeared on the threshold.</p><p>“I got my letter!” Jake said happily, waving an envelope in the air. Gina had turned hers into a paper airplane and threw it through the air like a dart before running to hug her best friend.</p><p>“Me too! Finally! We’ve been waiting for this day forever girl!” Gina yelled.</p><p>“I can’t wait! When are we gonna go to Diagon Alley to get our stuff?” Jake exclaimed.</p><p>“I’ll take you both this afternoon,” Darlene said.</p><p>“Yay!” the two kids chorused.</p><p>“However,” Gina’s Mum continued. “You two better be on your best behaviour. This will be the first day you set foot in the wizarding world and you could be meeting some of your future classmates and teachers. When I say best behaviour, I mean it.” She looked at them both sternly.</p><p>But the two turned to each other and grinned. “When do we ever cause trouble?” Jake laughed.</p><p>“I am perfect, in every way Mum, you know I would never put a foot wrong,” Gina said mockingly.</p><p>Darlene shook her head exasperated, but then smiled. “You know I love you sweetheart, but you’ve got to make sure the rest of the world loves you too. And I mean you have to make yourself known. We talked about this, a good first impression is vital for showing what you're made of.” She bent down and kissed Gina on the forehead.</p><p>Jake rolled his eyes, “I just want to go and have fun. Can you imagine all the adventures we’re going to have? It’s going to be just like an action movie, but better because it’s real life and we have magic so we’ll be unbeatable.”</p><p>“You’re such an idiot, Jake,” Gina said before punching his arm and smirking. “The troll got you, You’re it!” She yelled before sprinting down the hall laughing as she went.</p><p>“You are a troll,” Jake grumbled under his breath as he ran after her.</p><p>“Merlin's beard! Whatever am I going to do with those two,” Darlene sighed as she turned back to the cooker to finish making their lunch.</p><p>After they had all eaten, Jake, Gina and her mother put on their robes before taking a short walk across London to the Leaky Cauldron. Darlene had a hard time keeping the two out of mischief herself but eventually resorted to threatening them with no visiting the ice cream shop if they were naughty. It made Jake grumpy as they made their way to Diagon Alley but as soon as they got through the passageway at the back of the Leaky Cauldron and saw the place bustling with wizards and activity, his spirits immediately lifted. He stared excitedly at all the different shops, as did Gina at his side. They were mesmerised before Darlene broke them out of their little trance.</p><p>“We’ll go to Ollivanders first to get your wands and then we can worry about everything else later. Can’t do magic without a wand now, can you?” she chuckled. She gestured for them to follow her across the bustling street and they both made a move to follow her before Jake grabbed Gina's elbow.</p><p>“Want to explore first?” He grinned.</p><p>“What do you have in mind?” She said, uncertain.</p><p>“We have to go get ice cream at Florean Fortescue's first! Your mum can’t stop us later then when we do get into trouble,” he said proudly, pleased at his own genius plan.</p><p>“Ok but if we do that then you have to come with me to Madam Primpernelles beautifying potions shop,” Gina scowled.</p><p>“Ugh I wouldn’t be caught dead in there!” Jake shrugged.</p><p>“Well ok then, I’ll just tell mum that you're trying to sneak off,” she moved as if to follow her mum again but Jake grabbed her elbow.</p><p>“Fine. Fine. I’ll come, but ice cream first yeah!?” Jake gave in.</p><p>Gina nodded and the two snuck into a crowd of fast moving wizards to hide and followed them down the street to their chosen destination.</p><p>Once they reached the ice cream parlour however, something caught Jake’s eye and he stopped in his tracks and Gina walked straight into him.</p><p>“What’s wrong, Jakey? Don’t just stop like that.” She glowered, brushing herself down. Jake didn’t respond for a moment, he continued to stare straight across the road as if he could see something through the wall.</p><p>“What was it, and why are you being weird? Weird as in weirder than normal,” Gina questioned him, shaken by his strange behaviour.</p><p>“I thought I just saw.... I thought I just saw my dad,” Jake said sadly with a slight shrug.</p><p>Gina slipped her hand into his and gently squeezed it sympathetically, “Do you want to follow him and find out?” she asked. “Going where we’re not wanted usually cheers you up!” she stated hopefully.</p><p>They both grinned, then snuck down the dark alley, following the figure Jake believed was his Dad.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. In the Shadows</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As they crept down the dark alley in search for Jake’s Dad, the temperature suddenly began to feel much colder and Jake started shivering. They kept going though for what felt like hours before Gina started getting impatient as there was no sign of anyone.</p><p><br/>
“I don’t like it down here very much,” Gina grumbled.</p><p><br/>
“Is someone scared?” Jake mocked her.</p><p><br/>
“What? No, of course not! But this doesn’t feel like a place where your dad would just come to hang out. Maybe you imagined it,” Gina shrugged.</p><p><br/>
They stopped in their tracks and Jake sighed. “Maybe you’re....”</p><p><br/>
“Right?” Gina finished for him. “Of course I am, girl. Let’s go back and find mum, she’ll be looking for us by now.”</p><p><br/>
However, as they turned to leave there was a loud bang as a door shut several buildings away and before they knew it curiosity had got the better of them and they were both running up to the window to peak inside.</p><p><br/>
There were all sorts of weird magical objects from furniture to jewellery and even what looked like human bones. “Ugh,” Gina groaned, “That is so disgusting.”</p><p><br/>
Jake was silent as he looked on. He soon spotted a group of four or five wizards sitting in a corner in deep discussion. He recognised his dad immediately, who seemed to be showing the group something that was out of Jake’s sight and he felt a pang of sadness. His dad had chosen to leave him, he should be desperate to walk away and try to forget him. Instead he decided he wanted to know what was so important that he had chosen to abandon his own son for. He had to get answers. Pushing himself away from the window ledge he made a move to open the shop door but Gina shoved him back.</p><p><br/>
“What are you doing?” she whispered harshly, her usual calm and kind face distorted into one of worry and protectiveness.</p><p><br/>
“I’m going to talk to my Dad!” he said, determination ablaze in his gentle brown eyes as he took a step closer to the door again.</p><p><br/>
“You are not!” Gina said just above a whisper, clutching his wrist. “We are getting out of here, right now. He doesn’t want us here, Jake. Can you imagine what he’d do if he saw you again? All on your own? They’ll be another time but this isn’t it.”</p><p><br/>
Jake took one last wistful look at the door then nodded. The duo then ran back hand in hand to the bustling street of diagon alley to find Gina’s mum.</p><p>* * * * * *</p><p>“WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN!!!!!!?” Gina’s mum yelled as the two ran up to her. “I was worried sick! I thought I lost you, Gina. And Jake? Your mother would have killed me!” Jake bit his lip nervously as he looked at the floor.</p><p>“You, Gina Linetti, are grounded until the day you leave for school young missy and as for you Jake I will be having a talk with your mother when we get back, I’m sure she will devise a suitable punishment!”</p><p><br/>
Gina straightened up, her wavy ginger hair bouncing off her shoulders. “It wasn’t Jake’s fault,” she said matter of factly as her mum glowered down at her. “He...we, we thought we saw his dad.”</p><p><br/>
“Is this true?” She looked at Jake with one eyebrow raised. Jake nodded, eyes still fixed on the concrete floor.</p><p><br/>
“Oh Jacob!” Gina’s mum sighs as she bends down and looks up at him, putting a hand lightly under his chin to stop him looking away from her.</p><p><br/>
“Your father had things he felt he needed to do. It doesn’t mean that he never loved you, but it also means that you can’t go and find him either. Whatever it is he’s doing, he doesn’t want you involved. Don’t go looking for trouble, ok!?” She says to him gently. Jake smiles faintly and nods, his hands still trembling from the adrenaline.</p><p><br/>
* * * * * *</p><p>After their little adventure, Jake and Gina stuck close to Darlene. They did indeed go to Ollivanders where Jake acquainted an 11’ willow wand with the core of dragon heartstring, while Gina found her wand match in that of a 9’ Ebony wand of unicorn tail hair. They managed to get all the books they needed while still having time to stop off at the beautifying potions store and the joke shop before they went to the Magical Menagerie to buy themselves their companions for the year ahead. Jake picked out a small Great Grey owl who he instantly named Algernon, while Gina picked out a big graceful eagle owl which she named Beyoncé. They were so well behaved after their earlier escape that Gina’s mum even treated them all to ice cream at the end of the afternoon, Jake’s favourite part of the day.</p><p><br/>
Once they got back to their street, Darlene dropped Gina off at Jake’s house so that Karen could look after the two trouble makers for the rest of the day. It was only fair after all. Karen opened the door excitedly when they arrived.</p><p><br/>
“I trust you had a fun afternoon?” she asked, opening her arms for a hug from Jake.</p><p><br/>
“It was the best!” Jake returned the hug then told her everything they had got up to.</p><p><br/>
“Did they also behave themselves?” Karen asked Darlene inquisitively.</p><p><br/>
Jake and Gina looked at Gina's mum, suddenly horrified that she was going to tell Jake’s mum everything.</p><p><br/>
“They... they were surprisingly well behaved today!” Darlene said with a small laugh, “Must be the magic of Diagon Alley rubbing off on them!” she joked as she winked at Jake. Jake grinned back happily.</p><p><br/>
“Hope they brought it back with them,” Karen said, shaking her head in disbelief as Jake and Gina barged past up the stairs giggling.</p><p><br/>
“Not likely!” Darlene said, exasperated.</p><p><br/>
“Would you like to come in for a drink before you head home?” Karen offered.</p><p><br/>
“That would be good, there’s actually something I need to tell you about, now the kids are out the way.” Darlene glanced behind her as she followed Karen inside.</p><p><br/>
“Oh?” Karen asked curiously.</p><p><br/>
“It’s about Jake,” Darlene said.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Together and Apart</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is the original planned updated but with an added bonus chapter. Hope you enjoy :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The day finally arrived for Jake and Gina to leave for Hogwarts and their mothers were just as excited as they were. They all travelled together to King’s Cross station and carefully made their way to platform 9 3/4.</p><p>“Have a great time, baby, and just remember to write and also do your best to behave for once.” Karen kissed the top of Jake’s curls as he hugged her one last time before heading onto the platform.</p><p>“I’ll miss you, Mum, and don’t worry we were born for this,” he grinned stepping back and turning to face Gina, “Together?” </p><p>“Always!” Gina replied happily as she turned away from her own mum after a quick kiss on the cheek. </p><p>The two kids waved one last time then bolted through the wall onto platform 9 3/4.</p><p>The two raced each other onto the train and flung themselves into the nearest compartment. There was another girl already sat there. She had black hair and sat staring out of the window with her arms crossed. She looked about their age so Jake immediately introduced himself. </p><p>“Hey there, I’m Jake!” he said as he threw himself down opposite the girl and Gina delicately sat down next to him watching the girl curiously. “What’s your name? Are you a first year too? This is Gina, she’s my best friend and it’s our first day!” he said proudly.</p><p>However the girl just glared at them both before turning back to look out the window. </p><p>“Friendly,” Jake whispered to Gina sarcastically.</p><p>“Annoying,” the girl grunted, still staring stonily out the window.</p><p>“What you say is what you are! ‘Oh damn Gina!’” Gina said confidently. </p><p>The girl turned to face them again. “Did you just ‘oh damn’ yourself?” </p><p>“Well someone had to!” Gina rolled her eyes.</p><p>The girl smirked, then seemed to realise her amusement was obvious so she turned away again and glowered out the window once more. </p><p>Jake and Gina then decided to leave the girl alone, they weren’t going to let her ruin their fun. </p><p>The rest of the train journey passed by surprisingly uneventfully given Jake and Gina’s track record of being left unsupervised. They mostly played games and told each other made up stories about what Hogwarts was going to be like while Jake scoffed his way through sour candies and sherbet lemons. </p><p>Once the whistle blew announcing their soon arrival at Hogwarts, everyone started bustling about excitedly as they headed to the train exits.</p><p>Jake and Gina were tiny in comparison to most of the other students but they still fought their way through to be first off the train much to their delight.</p><p>“FIRST YEARS! FIRST YEARS THIS WAY PLEASE!” A loud voice boomed across the platform and Jake and Gina turned to look up into the eyes of whom they guessed was Hagrid, the well loved half giant and gamekeeper of hogwarts. </p><p>He rounded them all up then led the way up the path to the lake. Jake and Gina clambered into the boat with Hagrid along with the girl who had been with them on the train, a clumsy boy who looked around at them all nervously as he sat down after tripping up into the boat and another girl who was clutching a large binder in her arms who also smiled and politely said hello to them all. Jake blushed a little and returned the welcome before Hagrid’s loud voice echoed across the lake warning them all to sit still to avoid disrupting any hungry lake creatures and he laughed heartily before winking at Gina. </p><p>Jake and Gina got chatting to their new companions and soon found out that the boy was called Charles and the polite girl who had just joined them was called Amy. Amy seemed to know a lot about Hogwarts and they soon found out she came from a large pureblood family and 4 out of her 6 brothers are already at Hogwarts and have told her loads of stories about it. Jake was very eager to hear about it all whereas Gina became a bit hostile and felt that this girl was a bit of a know it all but not nearly as annoying as the clumsy muggleborn Charles who knew next to nothing about Hogwarts, let alone the wizarding world and he seemed to take every word Jake and Amy said to heart. </p><p>Once they arrived at the other side of the lake, Hagrid led them all up the stone staircase to the entrance where they were met by the deputy headmistress, Professor McGonagall. She eyed them all suspiciously before informing them all about the sorting and what to expect at their time here. Then they followed her to the Great Hall where the sorting began.</p><p>Jake and Gina were desperate to be placed in the same house together. Everything they had done in their entire lives they had done together and they never wanted that to change. They looked out for each other like brother and sister.</p><p>They watched nervously as each of their fellow first years were sorted.</p><p>Charles Boyle went to Hufflepuff, and they finally found out the quiet girl from the train was called Rosa Diaz and she went to Slytherin. Amy Santiago unsurprisingly went to Ravenclaw and she was over the moon. There seemed to be lots of first years nervously awaiting their fate but before Jake knew it the hat was on his head declaring he was a Gryffindor. He watched on anxiously as a Sophia Perez, Bill Weasley, Doug Judy and Adrian Pimento joined him at the Gryffindor table; a Genevieve Mirren Carter, Vivian Ludley and Bill Hummertrout went to Hufflepuff; Teddy Wells, Jocelyn Price and Kylie Clarke joined Amy in Ravenclaw; and Debbie Fogle, Stevie Schillens, Melanie Hawkins and Caleb John Grosche became slytherins. Finally it was time for Gina to walk up and  place the sorting hat on her head. It barely even hesitated before it announced that she was actually a Slytherin and Jake felt sick to the stomach as Gina flounced her way over to the Slytherin table. She sat down and looked almost apologetically over at him and for the first time in their lives the two felt completely alone. </p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. New Horizons</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Bonus chapter tonight, enjoy! :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Once the Sorting Ceremony met its end, first year students were directed to their common rooms by their heads of houses. The Slytherin head girl who was called Madeline Wuntch gathered her fellow slytherins and led them down to the dungeons where the Slytherin common room could be found. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gina felt a growing excitement in the pit of her stomach and she turned to joke with Jake about how awesome it was going to be to live down here but then she felt a sudden wave of nausea again as she realised Jake wasn’t actually here to share this with her. Instead of letting it get her down though, she stubbornly flung her hair back and sped up to walk alongside Rosa.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rosa made a point of ignoring Gina's presence but she refused to let this phase her. “Want to be besties?” Gina asked her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” Rosa replied. “I want you to go away,” she muttered. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still Gina wasn’t bothered by this. She had a feeling this girl needed a Gina to show her the world, so instead of moving away from the girl as they wandered down the stone steps of the common room she stayed by her side but lapsed into silence. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Once everyone was gathered around the fire in the common room Madeline Wuntch explained to them all about the workings of Hogwarts and their school schedules, then she left them to her own devices to go and talk to her own friends. Gina looked around the common room eagerly before she realised Rosa had left her side. She glanced down the stone stairs to the left and watched the door bang shut. Guessing that was Rosa escaping the crowded room, Gina hesitated, pondering whether to follow her or not before she felt someone elbow her in the side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Watch it!” Gina turned and yelled in the girl's face. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry! I ... I tripped!” The girl smiled apologetically. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gina snorted, “Well how about you try not to next time!” She folded her arms aggressively.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good idea,” the girl nodded in awe at Gina. “The thing is I was trying to catch up with my cousin. You see, she doesn’t like very many people and I thought I could help her try and fit in here! I better go find her!” The girl said, trying to step past Gina.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>However, Gina came to a realisation and put her hand out to stop her. “Hang on, your Rosa’s cousin?” she asked dubiously. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The girl nodded, “I’m Debbie!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t ask,” Gina said sarcastically.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Debbie’s face fell and she made to move away again but Gina stopped her once more.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, that’s an ok name I guess. I’m Gina and this is J.... never mind,” she stops herself. “Anyway can we go find Rosa,” she says hurriedly, distracting herself from the temporary loss of her best friend. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Debbie beamed back happily, “You’re going to love her!”</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>                           *    *    *    *    *    *</span>
</p><p>
  <span><br/>Jake followed his fellow Gryffindors up the great stone stairs up to the Gryffindor common room. He wondered if Gina missed him as much as he was missing her. However he soon got distracted from his wallowing as his eyes danced about excitedly trying to take in all the moving pictures and Hogwarts ghosts. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is so cool,” Jake gasped quietly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It is, isn’t it!” the boy next to him murmured, “My brothers would be so jealous if they could see me now!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jake grinned sheepishly. “I’m Jake by the way.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bill,” the red haired boy replied as he smiled back. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two chatted away happily as they made their way into the common room before their head boy interrupted. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Quiet now please. All of you!” the boy said desperately. The room fell quiet as the boy told them all about the comings and goings of Hogwarts and what they should expect. The kids all pitched in with lots of questions too which went on for almost an hour while the head boy answered gratefully before telling them all that that was enough and he retired to his own dormitory. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jake and Bill found a seat together by the fire where Bill showed Jake his Wizards chess board game. Jake was amazed at this game. It was something he had never learned about being brought up by his muggle mother and his only friend was a wizard who had very little interest in games and make believe. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two chatted while they played and learned loads about each other. Bill came from an entire family of wizards and knew loads about Hogwarts and the Wizarding World and Jake listened to every detail in amazement. He wished he was more interesting especially when Bill eventually stopped talking about his own life and instead became curious about Jake.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So what about you?” Bill asked inquisitively.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What about me?” Jake shrugged, feeling suddenly awkward.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, you’ve not told me anything about you! Do you have siblings? Are they coming to Hogwarts too?” Bill asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jake picked at a splinter that was hanging off the edge of the wooden table, his eyes fixed on it. He shrugged again nervously.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well no, well, not really anyway.” He glanced back at Bill awaiting his response.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How can you say ‘you don’t really’ have siblings!?” Bill laughed at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I just, ok truthfully I don’t have any real siblings. I mean I always wanted a brother but my parents split a few years ago and my Dad didn’t even want me so .....” Jake trailed off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh right... sorry!” Bill said, concerned for his new friend and unsure how to make him feel better.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>However, Jake stood up. “But I don’t care. I have my Mum and I have Gina!” he said more confidently. “She’s always been there for me, and she’s like a sister to me,” he said fondly. “Yeah my Dad didn’t stick around to teach me about the Wizarding World but Gina did. She’s taught me how to survive and have fun in this world. And I showed her movies and TV and Die Hard!” he said, eyes sparkling with pride. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Die Hard??” Bill laughed again, looking curiously at this new found spirit within Jake. He couldn’t believe Jake didn’t find himself interesting. Bill could not be more interested in his new house mate. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Risky Business</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The morning of their first day of classes arrived quickly for the new first years. Jake and Gina shared their first class of the day which saw them in double potions with Professor Snape.<br/><br/>Gina quietly found a seat at the back next to Rosa and reserved the space on the left for when Jake arrived. She watched the clock tick by agonisingly slowly as the rest of the class filtered in but there was still no sign of Jake. At five minutes past nine the door swung open and in stormed their potions professor.<br/><br/>He didn’t look impressed at all with the students before him and he growled out his instructions without so much as a welcome. “There will be no foolish wand waving or silly incantations in this classroom,” he glowering.<br/><br/>Just as he finished his sentence the door swung open again and in stumbled Jake looking very flushed as if he’d just ran for miles. He mumbled a swift apology with barely a glance at the professor then dashed over to find a seat.<br/><br/>Bill smiled at him mid way up the row of tables and gestured for Jake to take the spare seat next to him. Jake beamed back and was about to throw himself down in the seat when he caught sight of Gina waving furiously at him from the back. Jake glanced back at Bill hesitantly, then mouthed ‘sorry’ to him before turning away to go and join Gina at the back. However, he did not miss the genuinely crestfallen look that crossed Bill’s face as Jake turned his offer to sit with him down and it made Jake feel incredibly<br/>guilty and he began to wonder if he had made the right choice.<br/><br/>Once Jake sat down, Professor Snape scowled at him from the front of the classroom.<br/><br/>“What is your name?”<br/><br/>“Jake.... Peralta,” Jake replied worriedly.<br/><br/>“Earned yourself a detention on your first day...well done Peralta!” Snape continued to glare at him.<br/><br/>“What for?” Jake said in dismay. Gina watched on defensively.<br/><br/>“DO NOT TALK BACK!” he shouted, “You were late to my class!”<br/><br/>“So were you!” Jake replied angrily, standing up out of his chair as Gina sniggered at his side.<br/><br/>“HOW DARE YOU!” Snape’s voice bounced off the walls in his obvious rage. “Are you wanting to spend your first week of Hogwarts in detention?” he asked sarcastically.<br/><br/>Jake bit his lip furiously then taking a deep breath he forced himself to sit back down in his seat.<br/><br/>Snape smugly strolled over to the chalk board and waved his wand which immediately began scribbling down their instructions for their mornings lesson.<br/><br/>“A Gryffindor with an attitude, what a surprise this is,” he grumbled sarcastically, rolling his eyes. Jake and Gina glanced at each other quickly and shared a mutual understanding in the briefest of smiles. Snape wasn’t going to get away with this and if there’s anything the duo knew it was how to cause mischief in a classroom.</p><p>* * * * * *</p><p>During the lesson Snape had asked them all to partner up to begin the foundations of the Forgetfulness potion.<br/><br/>Jake and Gina partnered up immediately as Rosa refused to work with anyone. However, Jake couldn’t help feeling hurt when Bill turned to ask their new friend and fellow Gryffindor Doug Judy to partner with him instead of even asking Jake. He knew he had to talk to Bill, and make things right but it had to wait until after class. He had to get his own back on Snape first and for that he needed Gina's help. Snape paced around the classroom checking in on each pairing and making sure they were doing his work right. He seemed to keep a special eye on Jake and Gina though which was making it incredibly hard for them to hide what they were really up to. Jake, for one, couldn’t even keep a straight face whenever Snape spoke to them and he could tell it just made him even madder. However, Gina was getting mad with him too by this point and encouraged him to act more normal or it’ll become suspicious. That soon calmed Jake down and before they knew it they were ready to surprise the potions Professor. <br/><br/>Snape announced that each pairing should bring their potion up to his desk and they would each be tested on one of his Slytherin volunteers from 6th year.<br/><br/>He requested Jake and Ginas potion be tested first. As they walked up to the desk with the potion, Snape watched them with an eyebrow raised almost suspiciously. When they were finally able to step away they both sighed in relief watching and waiting for the fireworks to fly. <br/><br/>It didn’t take long for the Jake and Gina magic to fly. One stir of the potion and a loud bang echoed round the classroom while a huge billowing of smoke filled it. Students were laughing as they coughed slightly on the smoke and above the chatter, coughing and laughter, Snape screeched for the kids to leave the classroom. Jake and Gina flounced after the rest of the class but Snape grabbed them both by the back of their cloaks.<br/><br/>“What kind of stupid, childish stunt...” he spluttered.<br/><br/>“You’re both in detention the rest of the week! And you, Peralta, have just lost Gryffindor 10 house points. I hope you know that it already puts your house on minus points.” He grinned maliciously. “Now get out of my sight ... both of you!” he yelled as he finally let go of them both and they sprinted out into the corridor as fast as their little legs would carry them. However, they barely even had time to catch their breath before they ran headlong into Rosa who appeared to have waited for them.<br/><br/>“That was awesome!” Rosa finally smiled, her eyes bright and happy for the first time since they had met her.<br/><br/>“That was just the beginning my friend,” Gina replied mischievously. “You should have seen us at our last school,” Gina taunted, taking Rosa’s interest in her stride.<br/><br/>“Tell me everything,” Rosa demanded, her face returning to her natural glower.<br/><br/>The three wandered back up to the Great Hall to await their next class as Gina narrated their entire<br/>childhood. Jake followed a little behind and chimed in with a nod or a yes here and there whenever Gina<br/>required his input but really he was distracted and not paying much attention to the girls’ conversation.<br/>He really wanted to find Bill and talk to him.</p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Friends</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jake, Gina and Rosa made their way to the Great Hall to join their fellow classmates. Jake searched the crowd as the trio made their way over to the nearest table to have a seat. Rosa and Gina sat down, Gina still chattering away dramatically. However, she paused when she realised Jake hadn’t sat down with them. Instead he seemed to still be hurriedly scanning the room searching for something, or someone.</p><p>“Earth to Jake!” Gina waved her hand at him.</p><p>“What!?” he growled back.</p><p>“You going to join us or you just going to stand there admiring the view all day!?” Gina questioned him.</p><p>“I have to do something,” Jake replied, “I’ll be back in a minute.” He turned on his heel and fled the hall leaving Gina shaking her head in exasperation.</p><p>“See what I have to put up with,” Gina joked, “Having a baby brother can be such a nightmare sometimes.”</p><p>“You're the same age,” Rosa replied.</p><p>Gina sighed. “Rosa, physically and emotionally yes, but spiritually, I have so many years more experience.”</p><p>Rosa raised an eyebrow curiously but remained silent.</p><p>“I have so much to teach you, don’t I?” Gina said. She reached down to her bag and pulled out a quill and some parchment paper then began scribbling something down.<br/>Rosa watched on, wondering where her dramatic new friend was going this time.</p><p>Gina held up the paper confidently, showing off what she believed was an absolute masterpiece. Rosa stared at the paper. It was a drawing of a wolf which stood gracefully in the moonlight.</p><p>“And what has this got to do with anything?” Rosa asked.</p><p>“Damn girl, it’s my spirit animal. What else would I be? I am just so naturally blessed,” Gina replied.</p><p>“And what does that have to do with Jake? What would that make him?” Rosa said, puzzled.</p><p>“He’d probably be some common muggle pet. Like a cat or a fish. I don’t know. But that’s not the point here, this is about me and what I am. Nothing can outrank the wolf sweetie,” Gina declared.</p><p>Rosa laughed out loud for the first time. “You’re weird,” she remarked fondly.</p><p>* * * * * *</p><p>Jake ran down the hallway and up the stone stairs of the Gryffindor tower to the house common room. He yelled the password, “Cornish pixies”, and waited for the portrait of the fat lady to allow him access.</p><p>“No need to yell, I’m right here you know,” she grumbled.</p><p>Jake muttered an apology as he strode into the common room and his eyes immediately caught sight of Bill Weasley. He sat alone by the fireplace reading from a letter Jake could just make out. As Jake stepped closer he could see Bill's hands were trembling slightly and he looked upset. Jake cleared his throat and Bill looked round abruptly, shocked to see Jake there. Jake smiled gently but Bill, once over the initial shock, looked back down at the letter barely acknowledging his presence. Jake made his way over to the sofa and sat down next to him.</p><p>“Look, I’m really sorry, about earlier in potions. I shouldn’t have just, you know, abandoned you especially at least without an explanation,” Jake apologised sadly as he looked at Bill.</p><p>Bill stood up as if to leave and then seemed to think better of it. Instead he walked to the nearest window and stared out across the castle grounds with his back to Jake.</p><p>“I thought we were friends,” He said quietly, so quiet in fact that Jake only just heard him.</p><p>Jake felt his heart warm at the thought of Bill calling him a friend then guilt came crashing into him.<br/>raging and over powering in his heart like never before.</p><p>“We are friends, Bill. We are. And I’m more sorry than you could ever know,” he pleaded. </p><p>Bill continued to look out the window and remained silent. Jake carried on, “It’s just Gina - she’s like a sister to me. I thought she needed me. I had to be there for her, she’s always there for me. Also I made her a promise and I intend to keep my promises to my friends. There wasn’t time to explain to you, but I’m here now. I came looking for you. I want to be your friend,” Jake said insistently. He waited several moments for Bill to respond and his heart sank when he still failed to even look at Jake.</p><p>“Well, I’ll be in the Great Hall, if you change your mind,” Jake said sadly and with one last hopeful look at Bill he turned and made his way back to the door of the common room. Just as the door opened and he began to step out Bill stopped him.</p><p>“Wait,” he said.</p><p>Jake turned his heart racing.</p><p>The portrait of the fat lady moaned something about time wasters these days as she swung shut again and the two boys giggled awkwardly.</p><p>“Look, Jake, I like you a lot. And I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have put you in this position. I was just so excited to have a new friend and I was worried you maybe didn’t want to be my friend after all. Forgive me?” Bill cleared the air.</p><p>“I have nothing to forgive,” Jake smiled softly. “So. We friends?” he said happily.</p><p>“Friends!” Bill exclaimed running up to Jake and hugging him.</p><p>* * * * * *</p><p>The rest of the day Jake and Bill were practically inseparable. They sat together in all their other classes, once Gina reassured Jake she was fine and told anyone who would listen that her brother was finally growing up and no longer relied on her. Jake rolled his eyes at this but with no hard feelings especially since she even admitted to him on the quiet that she was proud of him making new friends and he was just as happy to see that she had made a new friend in Rosa. Gina also didn’t seem to have a hard time<br/>making other students admire her including several older students who had a keen interest in divination that recognised her supposed deep connections to the spiritual world despite her over dramatic nature, and she was truly in her element as she expressed her feelings to them on this. Jake and Gina could not ask for much more. They had new friends, and their life was beginning to change more than they even knew but one thing is certain, they always knew they were going to have each other no matter what.</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Drama at the Quidditch Match</h2></a>
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    <p>The remainder of the first month of classes at Hogwarts passed quickly for Jake and Gina. Jake managed to keep himself out of mischief for the most part as he found detentions in the first week draining and meant he had less time to hang around with Bill, so he began making a special effort. However, he had also made a new friend in Doug Judy, his now well renowned detention buddy and sometimes the two just couldn’t help getting in trouble. If there was drama, everyone knew these two were always involved somehow. <br/><br/>This time it was a Saturday afternoon in mid October which saw the first round of the Quidditch house cup. The game was being played by Slytherin and Ravenclaw so Jake went along to support Gina’s team with her and her friends but Doug Judy also invited himself along to join Jake at the match, citing that he had never seen a live Quidditch match before. <br/><br/>Doug Judy was very invested in the art of broomsticks. He chatted away excitedly about the brooms the two teams were riding and the advantages of each one for their game positions. Jake just nodded his head in agreement helping to feed Doug’s enthusiasm but really Jake had no interest whatsoever and was relieved when he finally met Gina and Rosa in the stands and had an excuse to ignore him. Their fellow first year, the Ravenclaw girl Amy Santiago was also in the stands amongst them, and he offered her a smile as they got near and she beamed back, blushing slightly. <br/><br/>Shortly after they got comfortable in the stands the group watched as the first game of the Hogwarts Quidditch cup commenced. They all watched in utter amazement as chaos reigned above them, and Jake and Gina yelled happily as minutes ticked by and Slytherin pulled into the lead. A 5th year boy they all knew to be Raymond Holt commentated the game from the box. <br/><br/>His commentary of the game however left a lot to be desired. It was less than thrilling hearing that the quaffle had been “hit from one team to another and back again” and soon Jake and Doug grew a bit bored as neither team seemed to be able to score for the last ten minutes. <br/><br/>“Is there anywhere we can get food?” Jake asked hopefully. <br/><br/>“You're always thinking about food Jake, can’t you just live in the moment?” Gina said, ruffling his hair. <br/><br/>Jake darted out of her reach and huffed slightly but resumed his attention to the game. <br/><br/>“I have an idea,” Doug Judy grinned as he slipped into the crowd and vanished. Jake wondered where he was going and instead of hovering around to find out he went to follow him, wanting in on the action. <br/><br/>Jake eventually got back down to the grounds but there was no sign of Doug Judy. Wondering what he was up to Jake made to head back up to the stands to look for him again when he found his path blocked by some other students. Jake looked up at them nervously as they were tall in comparison to his small frame. <br/><br/>“What?” Jake asked, scrunching up his nose defensively. They were definitely not in his year and by the looks of the emblems on their cloaks, they were Ravenclaws. <br/><br/>“Why is a little Gryffindor termite like you shouting for Slytherin of all houses!?” one boy said, glaring at him. <br/><br/>Jake looked at him puzzled. “I’m supporting my friend’s team,” he said firmly, “Last I checked there were no rules saying I couldn’t!” <br/><br/>“There are all rules saying you shouldn’t support Slytherin. Unwritten rules perhaps but still rules and you should know better.” A Ravenclaw girl folded her arms in disgust. <br/><br/>Jake looked at them confused. “You’re just mad your team is losing!” He made a move to get past them but the boy shoved him back. <br/><br/>Jake glared at him. <br/><br/>“You really don’t know, huh?” the Ravenclaw mocked him. <br/><br/>Jake just continued to glare at them. <br/><br/>“Slytherins are all evil. Look at their history, everyone of them is a descendant of .... you know who.” <br/><br/>Jake felt queasy and suddenly lost his appetite. “That’s not true!” he shouted, “My friend is in Slytherin and she’s the best person I’ve ever known,” he continued adamantly, then began to storm off. However, a hand grabbed his shoulder to stop him. <br/><br/>“We are right and you’ll see eventually. But we’ve not finished with you anyway. Your little friend up there sold our team broken broomsticks and I’m guessing you had something to do with it.” <br/><br/>The boy swiftly took out his wand and pointed it directly at Jake. Panicking Jake stumbled back clutching his own wand shakily in his hand. However he couldn’t think of any spells to defend himself.<br/><br/>Suddenly there was a bright red flash which shocked both Jake and the Ravenclaw boy who fell back in the grass. They quickly scrambled up to see Amy Santiago, followed by Gina and Rosa, running towards them quickly. “Jake, are you alright!?” she asked him softly, her own wand outstretched and trembling in her hand.<br/><br/>“I’m ok.” He brushed himself off shyly as she turned and glared at the three ravenclaws. <br/><br/>“Leave him alone, he’s my friend!” She glared. The three Ravenclaws looked astounded by the sudden change in Amy’s behaviour and Jake too was a little taken aback. She stood up to someone for him. Unfortunately though at the same minute a loud voice echoed across the grounds and the entire group turned to see McGonagall storming towards them dragging none other than Doug Judy behind her. He looked very proud of himself, whereas Amy looked horrified as she realised she had been caught at the scene of a crime and Jake felt ashamed that he had just gotten her in trouble, especially after all she had been the one to protect him. He knew he was going to have to make it up to her after all this. And Bill too who was surely going to kill him if he had ended up in another detention again. <br/><br/>Rosa on the other hand looked the happiest she had ever been. “This day just gets better and better,” she laughed. Gina too nodded in agreement. <br/><br/>Professor McGonagall, however, was not amused.</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Coming Together</h2></a>
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    <p>McGonagall raged at them for several minutes before punishing all of them with a week's worth of detention and a loss of 10 house points each. She shook her head in disappointment at them and then, as the crowds dispersed from the Quidditch arena announcing the end to the match, she marched away from them and back up to the castle.<br/><br/>The Ravenclaws took one look at Doug Judy, sizing him up, then looked back to where McGonagall was still making her way to the entrance and seemed to think better about picking another fight. The three pushed past him and the boy who had instigated an attack on Jake muttered, “This isn’t over” to Doug.<br/><br/>“I can’t wait to see what you have to offer!” Doug called back but thankfully the Ravenclaws chose to ignore this and carry on their way.<br/><br/>“Come on. Let’s go join everyone in the Great Hall for the feast. I’m still starving!” Jake said, leading the way. They all muttered in agreement and followed Jake back up to the castle. Amy walked alongside him and Jake suddenly felt awkward and unsure of what to say. He eventually found the words to thank her for saving his skin.<br/><br/>“I’m sorry, you know, for getting you in trouble like that. But thanks for stepping in, I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t got there first,” Jake smiled gratefully.<br/><br/>“Anytime,” Amy said. “I'm sure you would do the same for me.”<br/><br/>“You know it,” Jake acknowledged.<br/><br/>“Besides,” Amy continued energetically, “It was kind of fun, breaking the rules for once,” she said gleefully.<br/><br/>“Of course it is!” Jake agreed. “You should join us more often, this is the Jake way of life,” he enthused.<br/><br/>Amy giggled. “You're such a dork!”<br/><br/>“And you're such a nerd!” Jake chimed, breaking into fits of giggles too.<br/><br/>“Once you two stop flirting over there!” Gina made her presence known, “Can I talk to you about something Jake?”<br/><br/>Jake and Amy moved apart slightly and blushed awkwardly as they all reached the doorway to the Great Hall.<br/><br/>“Sure,” Jake said curiously. “I’ll um, see you inside, in a minute,” he told Amy as she paused to wait for him. She nodded quickly then following Rosa and Doug into the hall, she quickly found a seat at a table and was pleasantly surprised that Rosa followed her there.<br/><br/>Amy was stunned and that was maybe too apparent on her face. “I’m not going to sit on my own,” Rosa grunted as she took a bite of food hungrily. Amy swallowed her disappointment but then began to nibble at a pumpkin pasty on her own plate and began to feel quite content.<br/><br/>“What did those Ravenclaws want?” Gina questioned Jake as she leant against the wall.<br/><br/>Jake shrugged. “I think Doug had upset them. Something about broken broomsticks.”<br/><br/>“And that’s all they said?” Gina raised an eyebrow sceptically.<br/><br/>“Well yeah .... mostly anyway. Can we please just go and get food?” Jake said thinking about how hungry he was and trying to deflect the conversation.<br/><br/>“No. What did they say? About us, about Slytherin?”<br/><br/>Jake shifted uncomfortably as he realised she must know about the stereotypes and so he told her everything that the older Ravenclaw students had confronted him about. He also told her that he defended her and her house and that it was just a load of rubbish they had made up because they were losing.</p><p>Gina looked strangely proud of him at this. “You said that?”<br/><br/>“Well yeah. And I meant it. I’ve known you my whole life, you're not bad. Rosa could do with cheering up a bit but she has a good heart really too. And I don’t understand how your personality can be determined by where a magical hat tells you you belong. So stupid” Jake joked.<br/><br/>Gina nodded. “And I thought you were still a naive little boy. They grow up fast,” she mused.<br/><br/>Jake rolled his eyes. “Ok are we done here? Because I’m hungry,” he moaned.<br/><br/>“Yes. Last one to the table is a mountain troll!” she yelled leaping past him and racing to where Amy and Rosa sat quietly.<br/><br/>Motivated by food Jake for once managed to outrun Gina and sat himself down opposite Amy letting out a leap of joy as Gina slowly lowered herself down opposite Rosa.<br/><br/>“I let you win!” Gina said, “Heaven knows it’s not fair that you’re always last.”<br/><br/>“That’s what losers say!” Jake said, stuffing his mouth full of pumpkin pasty.<br/><br/>“Perhaps. And you would know that feeling very well,” Gina said.<br/><br/>Jake failed to come up with a response to that and so doing the only thing he could think of he stuck his tongue out at her, symbolising his defeat.<br/><br/>“Real mature.” Gina shook her head pretending to despair. Now satisfied she began eating too and then soon struck up a conversation that deeply revolved around herself in which only Rosa seemed the least bit interested.<br/><br/>After several moments Amy turned to Jake to ask him if he had done their latest potions essay yet but was cut off by Bill's arrival to the table. He had finally joined them and Jake's delight could not have been more obvious on his face. He had been wondering where he had got to since the start of the match. Bill had told Jake earlier that he never really took an interest in Quidditch that much and instead preferred to stay inside and read.<br/><br/>Jake greeted him excitedly, completely oblivious to Amy’s look of jealousy as she watched on and grew quiet as the two boys chatted away. Bill asked if they had all enjoyed the match and Jake went into a lengthy explanation about all the trouble they had got into. Bill was dismayed at first on hearing Jake had landed himself in detention, again, but once he realised Amy had stopped him from getting hurt, he realised that detention was probably the better outcome from the situation. However, he vowed to never let Jake go to a Quidditch match without him ever again. Jake couldn’t have all the fun to himself and Bill had actually really missed his friend’s company that afternoon.</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. We are a Family</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Weeks soon turned into months at Hogwarts and before Jake and Gina knew it, the Christmas holidays were upon them.<br/><br/>Many students were heading back home for the Christmas break, however, things were different for Jake and Gina. They were part of the few that were to stay behind at Hogwarts. Jake’s mum had sent him a letter telling him that she was away from home on work related business and so he had no one to go back to. Gina suggested that he come home with her for the full holiday but even her Mum had said that she couldn’t handle the two of them for that length of time. So instead of leaving her best friend, she<br/>decided that she would stay at Hogwarts with him too.<br/><br/>Jake, while happy Gina had stayed behind for him, couldn’t help but feel guilty for stopping her going home to her Mum. He was also disappointed that both Bill and Amy were to return home to their families for the holidays and that he wouldn’t see them for two whole weeks, but they both promised to write.<br/><br/>Gina however was excited about her first Christmas away from home and she did everything she could to cheer Jake up. They also weren’t completely alone. For some reason Rosa too stayed behind despite not telling them why. Gina claimed Rosa just wanted more quality time with her best friend Gina. However, she had become even more moodier since everyone had left and she began spending less and less time with Jake and Gina and even began to go as far as avoiding them.<br/><br/>Jake had made it his personal mission to find out why Rosa had stayed at Hogwarts and what had changed her behaviour so significantly in such a short time. He struggled to get a chance to talk to her alone though until Christmas Eve when she didn’t show up for the feast. So excusing himself politely from the table, Jake searched the castle and grounds for her wondering where she had got to.<br/><br/>He almost gave up looking when he heard a loud banging sound coming from one of the old classroom storerooms in the dungeons. Carefully pushing the door open he peered inside and saw Rosa. She had her back to him and appeared to be throwing something at the wall.<br/><br/>“Hey, um, Rosa,” Jake said, walking in quitely, scared to make her jump.<br/><br/>Rosa turned around to face him, her eyes like daggers. Then without a moment's hesitation she yelled at him to get out and threw the glass object in his direction instead. On instinct Jake ducked before the glass object shattered against the wall behind him.<br/><br/>Jake didn’t move.<br/><br/>Rosa continued to glare at him. “You heard me! Don’t make me come over there and crush you with my own hands,” she growled.<br/><br/>Jake continued to hold his ground, albeit very nervously.<br/><br/>Rosa felt agitated that he still stood there ignoring her request. Instead of listening to him she picked up another glass object and aimed it at Jake once more. This time though Jake was ready for her move. He whipped out his wand and aimed it directly at the object in her hand.<br/><br/>“Expelliarmus!” he yelled.<br/><br/>Caught by surprise the object escaped Rosa’s grasp and shattered on the floor at her feet.<br/><br/>She looked at Jake speechless for a moment then turned her back, folding her arms angrily.<br/><br/>“What do you want?”<br/><br/>“I just wondered why you weren’t at the feast. It’s Christmas Eve,” Jake said carefully.<br/><br/>“So what? It’s just like any other day.”<br/><br/>“That’s where you're wrong. You get more food, we get presents tomorrow and more food. We don’t have classes. There’s food, decorations and music and - and.... friends,” he smiled softly. <br/><br/>“It’s about family, Jake,” Rosa said coldly.</p><p>“It doesn’t have to be. Besides...” Jake paused, “Friends can be family too.”<br/><br/>“Hardly. My family just abandon me any other day of the week. What would you know anyway?” She turned to glare at him again.<br/><br/>“More than you would think,” he sighed.<br/><br/>Rosa raised an eyebrow but continued to stare stonily at him.<br/><br/>Sighing again, Jake sat himself down on the edge of a nearby table and squinted hesitantly at the stone floor.<br/><br/>“Look, my dad left when I was seven and he never looked back. My mum is a muggle ...”<br/><br/>“Ouch, that is rough,” Rosa flinched.<br/><br/>“That wasn’t really my point though,” he said shaking his head. “My mum wasn’t even around for me half the time. She was always working.” He looked at Rosa despondently. “Is always working.”<br/><br/>Rosa nodded in understanding. “Then you’ll see why everything is pointless.” Her tone changed but this time Jake detected sadness rather than outright anger.<br/><br/>“No, you're wrong again,” Jake said stubbornly, standing up. “I got to grow up with Gina instead! She’s like a sister to me. You can be a part of our family too. Just let us be a part of yours.”<br/><br/>Rosa sniffed and wiped a stray tear from her eye.<br/><br/>“Maybe,” she shrugged, pretending not to care.<br/><br/>“C’mon let’s get back to the feast!” Jake offered with a warm smile.<br/><br/>“Ok yeah.” She followed him out of the room and they made their way back to the Great Hall.<br/><br/>“Why do you hang around in that dark creepy cupboard anyway?” Jake mused as they walked down the corridor.<br/><br/>“I don’t know really. I guess I like it there. It’s a good place to, you know, be alone. And I like to throw things, I guess I figured it’s a safe space for that. Or it was until you showed up,” Rosa said with a huff.<br/><br/>“You’re a little scary sometimes, you know that? Brilliant, but scary,” Jake said bewildered. Rosa grinned and Jake threw an arm around her fondly. Then her expression turned to deep disgust and she pushed him off.<br/><br/>Jake looked shocked and was a little taken aback but then realisation hit him. “Oh yeah, I forgot the rule, it’s Rosa, no touchy,” he joked.<br/><br/>“That’s right, or I’ll break your arm off.”<br/><br/>“You wouldn’t!?” he mock gasped.<br/><br/>“I would, don’t tempt me!” she threatened.<br/><br/>“Yeah, you’re right. You would,” he laughed and Rosa even sniggered too.<br/><br/>For the first time that Christmas, as they sat down to eat their Christmas Eve feast and tune in to one of Gina's dramatic tales about being chased through woods by rabid garden gnomes both Jake and Rosa knew things were going to be ok.</p>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Into the Unknown</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>On the first night back after Christmas break, Jake and Gina both found themselves in detention again. This time they were accompanied by Rosa, Bill, Amy and a friend of Amy’s called Teddy whom Jake had never really seen eye to eye with.</p><p>Teddy had reported the rest of them to McGonagall as he had caught them out after curfew and was such a teacher's pet that he thought he would be rewarded for it. Instead he too was punished for being out after curfew as well and his plan backfired.</p><p>Instead of letting them off the hook too easily, McGonagall decided that writing lines was far too generous a punishment particularly as it did nothing to deter Jake and Gina's disruptive behaviour.</p><p>So the following day after they had finished their last lesson, the group was met by Argus Filch, the school’s caretaker at the entrance hall before he led them all down to the grounds to meet Hagrid outside his hut. Filch then left them with Hagrid to devise suitable punishment. </p><p>Hagrid explained to the group that something in the Forbidden Forest was scaring off all the other creatures he would normally see and it was burning a lot of the plants they used for Potions and Herbology so he needed their help to catch it before it caused more harm.</p><p>“And Dumbledore gave you permission for us to go in there?” Jake asked, fear prominent in his eyes.</p><p>“Well, ‘e said I could take yer detention now so ter speak,” Hagrid said guiltily.</p><p>“What? You scared, Peralta?” Amy mocked.</p><p>Teddy sniggered behind his back.</p><p>Jake glanced between them both bashfully, then faced Amy squarely. “Not even a bit scared. And I’ll prove it!”</p><p>“You don’t have to prove anything to her!” Bill insisted.</p><p>“How?” Amy asked taunting Jake and ignoring Bill's pleas to Jake not to get involved.</p><p>“I bet you won’t last 10 minutes in there,” Jake said and held out his hand.</p><p>“You're on.” She shook on it. “First one to leave has to do the other’s homework for a week.”</p><p>“Agreed.” Jake nodded. “And just so you know, I’m going to win.”</p><p>“You wish,” Amy said, tightening her handshake.</p><p>“Wow, your handshake is quite firm,” Jake stated, amused by her.</p><p>“I took a seminar!” Amy said proudly.</p><p>“Where??” Jake asked confused.</p><p>However at that moment Hagrid interrupted and he split them into pairs to search the forest so they could cover more ground. He put Gina and Rosa together, Bill with Amy and Jake ended up stuck with Teddy.</p><p>“If ye see a sign o’ anythin that looks burned or ye get yersel into any kind o’ trouble just shoot some red sparks up in the air and me and Fang ‘ll come and find ye.”</p><p>* * * * * *</p><p>As Jake and Teddy wound their way along an overgrown path through the forest, Teddy drawled on about how exciting History of Magic was. He was getting on Jake's last nerve and he quickly realised he would sooner lose his bet with Amy out of boredom rather than his fear of what actually lives there. </p><p>Jake couldn’t even get a word in to tell him how boring he was and he started tuning out to the wall of noise until he actually felt like something was following them.</p><p>“Shut up!” Jake shouted at him, holding out an arm in front of him to get Teddy to stop.</p><p>“Wow - rude much,” Teddy interjected. “What part of the history-.”</p><p>“Just shush, be quiet, I think I heard something.” Jake beckoned for him to stick close.</p><p>A branch cracked several meters behind them and they whipped around, suddenly on edge. Out of the bushes charged a half grown magical beast with wings the size of small ponies. The two boys stumbled back trying to get out of its path but the movement agitated it and it barrelled straight towards them knocking them down, its abundance of strength enough to wind them both. The creature then rose on its haunches roaring a breath of golden flame which made contact with the trees around them and they burst into flame.</p><p>The beast then eyed them suspiciously before diving into the flames and disappearing. Teddy dragged himself back onto his feet, and searched around for Jake. He coughed on the smoke as it filled the air around them before dropping to his knees beside Jake. It looked like Jake had been struck much harder as he had a cut on his head and was out cold. Teddy pointed his wand in the sky and shot red sparks into the air.</p><p>* * * * * *</p><p>“Ugh, this is so disgusting,” Gina whined as they traipsed through the forest.</p><p>“It’s not that bad.” Rosa shrugged.</p><p>“I should be inside by the fire, not out here caked in mud and forest bugs,” Gina moaned. “Also, if this so-called creature is scaring other animals off then I do not want to have a run in with it.”</p><p>“I have an axe.” Rosa took an axe out of the bag she was carrying and swung it over her shoulder.</p><p>“Damn girl, what else have you got in there!” Gina peeked inside. “And they say I’m dangerous.” Gina mused, shaking her head, impressed by Rosa's array of weapons she carried around.</p><p>Then suddenly red sparks lit up the sky and Rosa and Gina looked at each other curiously.</p><p>“Guess it’s time to use that axe,” Gina stated as they made to go in the direction where the red sparks had come from.</p><p>* * * * * *</p><p>Bill and Amy walked in silence as they meandered the forest path. The two hadn’t really spent that much time together before and the only thing the two knew they had in common was Jake.</p><p>“Lumos” Amy murmured, lighting the end of the wand so they could see better in the early dusk light.</p><p>“Don’t know many first years who know that charm yet,” Bill said, clearing the air between them.</p><p>“Well, I’ve done a lot of reading. And my older brothers taught me a lot of basic spells and stuff before I came too, just in case” Amy replied.</p><p>“Must be nice having older siblings to learn from at the school,” Bill said, slightly melancholy. “My brothers are all younger than me.”</p><p>“Believe me, it’s not that great,” Amy sighed. “I have so much to live up to. My brother David has done so well, he’s a head boy here and he got an O in all his OWLS and my parents expect me to do everything that he does. Sometimes I wish I could prove that I’m more than just a straight O student.”</p><p>“I guess. But at least you're good at stuff. I work so hard yet I still sometimes struggle with the actual spells. That’s why me and Jake practice and do homework together a lot. We like to try and help each other. When he’s not in detention anyway,” Bill laughed, thinking about his friend.</p><p>Amy laughed along with Bill too. “I could join you both if you like. Maybe I could help you both,” she offered.</p><p>“I can’t speak for Jake, but I’d like that,” Bill assured her. “What about your bet with him though?”</p><p>“Oh, don’t worry about that, I was just teasing him. There is no way I would trust him with my homework, not in a million years. He is just so easy to wind up,” Amy laughed.</p><p>“Tell me about it.” Bill grinned.</p><p>Red sparks suddenly flared above them and concern immediately hit them both. “Let’s go.”</p><p>* * * * * *</p><p>Jake stirred and his eyes flickered open but quickly closed again as the bright light blinded him. He soon came around though and some very concerned familiar faces blurred into his vision.</p><p>“Hey,” Jake murmured softly.</p><p>“Are you alright?” Bill asked, squeezing his hand gently.</p><p>“I’m ok.” Jake nodded, then put his free hand to his head. “Hurts a bit though.”</p><p>“Sounds like some fall you had, girl.” Gina looked at him, her eyes filled with worry.</p><p>“Where am I?” he asked, dazed.</p><p>“You're in the Hospital Wing. Hagrid brought you here right away,” Gina said pushing his curls back off his forehead. “You gave us a scare.”</p><p>“Sorry,” he said sadly. “Did you see the dragon?”</p><p>“Dragon!” Gina stood up. “You fought a dragon? Damn girl, why didn’t you call me?!”</p><p>“I didn’t fight it. It was just scared of us and it ran away.”</p><p>“Teddy said the same thing, Jake. Hagrid told McGonagall and Dumbledore as well but I’m afraid they just don’t believe it. They say you both just had a fright and imagined it,” Amy said.</p><p>“I didn’t!” Jake sat up, but quickly regretted it as dizziness overcame him so he slumped back down.</p><p>The group all glanced at each other. “Look we believe you Jake, but we’re going to have to prove it,” Gina said mischievously.</p><p>Dumbledore walked over from where he had been talking to McGonagall, Hagrid and Madam Pomfrey. “Excuse me, if I may have a minute alone with your friend Jacob here.”</p><p>“Sure,” they agreed.</p><p>“Also Jake,” Amy whispered in his ear, “I believe you owe me a week's worth of homework.” She winked then they all said their well wishes to Jake and promised to be back soon with some food for him then they scurried out of the room.</p>
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<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Calm Before the Storm</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>At breakfast the next morning, the friends all reunited over crumpets and cauldron cakes and they chatted excitedly about their adventure in the forest the night before.<br/><br/>“I hope Jake's okay,” Bill wondered out loud. “He didn’t come back to the common room last night after all.”<br/><br/>“Well, he damn well better be coming to classes. There is no way I’m putting up with Snape alone in Potions later. I’ll drag him there myself if I have to,” Gina said matter of factly while biting gingerly into a cauldron cake before deciding it wasn’t up to her standards and discarding it back onto her plate.<br/><br/>“If you want to know, ask him yourselves.” Rosa nudged Gina's shoulder. Gina looked affronted but then followed Rosa's gaze to see Jake carefully making his way through the crowded tables to join them at the back of the hall.<br/><br/>“Jakey, you’re back! Finally. I thought I was going to have to drag you down here!” Gina shouted happily, attracting the attention of some nearby 2nd years.<br/><br/>Jake smiled at her softly as he reached the table and sat down on the spare seat next to Bill and opposite Amy. Once he’d begun to take a bite of a cauldron cake, the group began bombarding him with questions which he willingly answered.<br/><br/>They were all relieved he was okay, however Amy wasn’t interested in that, she was actually acting rather odd. When they finally left the Great Hall to make their way to the first class of the day, Transfiguration with McGonagall, he finally had a chance to speak to Amy and ask her what was wrong.<br/><br/>“No, Jake,” Amy mumbled, picking up her pace as he sped up to catch up with her.<br/><br/>“I hadn’t even asked yet.” Jake grinned.<br/><br/>“Well, I’m not telling you,” Amy said firmly.<br/><br/>“You will, just you wait,” he replied, turning on his famous Jake Peralta charm.<br/><br/>“What are you going to do? Annoy me into talking?” Amy asked with a laugh.<br/><br/>“Very funny!” Jake stuck his tongue out. “But I won’t have to, you’ll tell me because you want to.”<br/><br/>“Dream on, Peralta!” Amy rolled her eyes as she sat down at her desk next to Teddy.<br/><br/>“I feel like it’s time for another bet!” Jake eyed her excitedly.<br/><br/>“So soon? After I kicked your butt in the last one?” Amy questioned him.<br/><br/>“I would have won, but you cheated. I never asked for someone to take me to the Hospital Wing,” Jake stated, crossing his arms in determination.<br/><br/>“If we had left you there you would have died, Jake.” Amy shook her head in exasperation at her classmate.<br/><br/>“I would have died a hero and a winner though,” Jake said confidently, only sounding convincing to himself.<br/><br/>“You will die neither of those ways, Mr Peralta, and much sooner than possibly foreseen if you don’t sit down immediately and let me start my lesson,” Professor Mcgongall announced upon her arrival as she walked in. The class burst into laughter.<br/><br/>Jake turned around in shock at her abrupt arrival and shyly sat down in his seat, feeling uncomfortably guilty. “Sorry, Professor,” he said awkwardly.<br/><br/>“You will be!” she uttered before turning her attention to the books on her desk. With a quick wave of her wand the books began handing themselves out around the classroom to all the eager and awaiting students before her.</p><p>The lesson commenced and soon Mcgongall had the class attempting to turn toads into goblets. Jake and Bill shared a toad and took it in turns trying desperately hard to turn theirs into anything that even resembled a goblet. However, Amy and Teddy sat just behind them and successfully achieved a perfect goblet after just one turn each. McGonagall praised them, surprisingly amazed by their prowess and awarded them both five house points each while shooting a disappointed look in Jake and Bill's direction.<br/><br/>Jake overheard Teddy and Amy giggling happily behind and wished he was half as good as them. He shared a look of longing with Bill whose face reflected Jake's feeling of frustration about the outcome of the lesson. When it was finally time to leave Mcgongall stopped them before they reached the door. Amy looked back hesitantly but the two encouraged her to go on without them and she nodded, giving them a quick look of pity before disappearing out of the classroom.<br/><br/>“Could I borrow two minutes of your time please, boys?” a chagrined McGonagall asked from behind her desk.<br/><br/>The two boys nodded uncertainly then walked over to her desk and sat down nervously in front of her. She stared at them long and hard for a moment as if wondering where to even start with what she wanted to say to them. Then as Jake was about to ask her if she was going to suspend them both she opened her mouth to speak.<br/><br/>“Don’t be disheartened by your work today, boys,” she said reproachfully. “Not all first years can do that spell after just one lesson. You need to keep focused and stay out of your own minds. Be patient and keep working at it and I’m sure you’ll both do fine. However, I can’t sit by and watch painfully slowly as you two fall behind. I expect you two to practice this spell in your own time before your next lesson. Understood?” she asked, her eyebrow raised skeptically.<br/><br/>“Understood, Professor,” Jake and Bill despondently replied together.<br/><br/>“Good,” she said satisfied by their response. Then she suddenly stood up and gestured for them to leave hurriedly. “Now don’t hang around here all day, get out or you’ll be late for your charms class,” her tone returning to that of her normally strict and demanding nature, but not without a sincere twinkle in her eyes which Jake noticed as they rushed out with a last wave in her direction.<br/><br/>When Jake and Bill left the class they ran straight into Amy who had apparently been waiting for them before they went up to charms.<br/><br/>“You're running late for charms class” Jake teased her.<br/><br/>“We still have 5 minutes. Besides I wanted to make sure you were both okay. I don’t think it would have been fair for you both to get into trouble especially as we haven’t even started doing our homework together yet!” Amy said chatting away happily, ignoring Jake's obvious attempt to detract from the conversation she had just overheard.<br/><br/>“What do you mean?” Jake asked, confused by the idea of doing homework with Amy.<br/><br/>Amy looked at Bill indignantly. “You didn’t tell him, did you?” she asked as they made their way up the stone steps to their charms class.<br/><br/>“Sorry, I forgot, you know with everything else that happened,” Bill said. A look of guilt flashed in his eyes as Amy sighed.<br/><br/>“What aren’t you guys telling me?” Jake asked impatiently as he looked between the two of them.<br/><br/>“Amy offered to help us both with our homework and spells,” Bill said offhandedly with a small shrug.<br/><br/>“I want to help you both!” Amy said hopefully.<br/><br/>“What makes you think we need any help?” Jake asked, pretending to be hurt, but both Bill and Amy scoffed in unison.<br/><br/>Jake ran a hand through his curls thoughtfully. “Fine. You win. When do we start?”</p>
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<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Fight or Flight</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Weeks passed by at Hogwarts and soon both Jake and Bill were beginning to find their place at the school. They owed a great deal of thanks in part to Amy who had been helping them with their homework and practice almost every night once she had completed her own assignments. Jake showed a great skill in Transfiguration and it quickly became his favourite class, whereas Bill showed a much greater talent in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Amy was proud of how well they had progressed and by the time it hit the end of May and they were just a month away from completing their first year she decided that it was maybe time for them to put an end to the extra practice now the two seemed to be managing fine on their own.<br/><br/>It was a warm spring afternoon and the three were sprawled on the grass playing Exploding Snap when Amy hesitantly brought up her feelings on the matter.<br/><br/>“I know we normally do Charms practice together on a Monday,” she started, “but me and Kylie are wanting to go to the library together tonight instead. There is this book we are looking for that Professor Binns mentioned yesterday in our History of Magic class and we really want to check it out.”<br/><br/>Jake and Bill stared at her for a minute.<br/><br/>“But I thought you were going to help us,” Jake queried her, feeling slightly put out.<br/><br/>“And I have!” Amy stated, “You're both doing way better than you were, none of the teachers have said a word against you both in days except for Professor Snape but everyone knows that he’s the hardest to please-.”<br/><br/>“That’s because he’s evil,” Jake butted in, making Bill murmur in agreement.<br/><br/>“Jake, you can’t say that about our teachers, honestly.” She shook her head in despair.<br/><br/>“Well it’s the truth,” Jake responded stubbornly, twirling a blade of grass between his fingers.<br/><br/>Amy chose to ignore his latest remark and instead persisted with what she was trying to tell them before Jake interrupted.<br/><br/>“Anyway,” she said after a slight pause in which Jake hastily tapped the cards in front of them with his wand and they exploded in the air announcing his third victory of the game in a row, “You don’t need me anymore, you can manage just fine on your own.”<br/><br/>Jake bit his lip, but this time kept silent.<br/><br/>“Fine,” Bill said as he carefully gathered up his cards and stood up, brushing the dirt off his robes, “We have somewhere else we need to be right now anyway, don’t we Jake?”<br/><br/>Jake looked up at Bill from where he remained sprawled out lazily on the grass, his eyebrows scrunched in confusion.<br/><br/>“We do?” he asked, trying to wrack his brains as to where Bill was going but failing.<br/><br/>“Yeah, remember?” Bill encouraged Jake to play along with him, urging him to understand.<br/><br/>Confusion was written across all the features on Jake's face as his brain tried to quickly understand the sudden change in situation. One thing he could tell though was Bill was unhappy and he seemed to want to go back inside the castle and Jake wasn’t going to be one to keep Bill waiting.<br/><br/>He gave a quick apologetic look to Amy who bore her own look of hurt and puzzlement as she pieced together what they were up to. Jake shrugged uncomfortably as Bill dragged him onto his feet urging him to come with him. Jake stumbled up as Amy asked where they were going but neither looked back at her. Instead they ran up the path to the castle and left a bewildered Amy alone on the grass feeling abandoned.</p><p>________________</p><p>Bill marched up the stone steps of Gryffindor tower taking two at a time, as Jake bumbled after him tripping over his own feet as he tried to keep up.<br/><br/>“Pumpkin juice!” Bill retorted to the Fat Lady as she demanded the password for the common room. As she slowly swung open Jake finally caught up to him and just managed to follow him straight through the portrait hole. Jake threw himself down on the nearest sofa by the fire to catch his breath. Bill however remained on his feet and instead paced the hearth.<br/><br/>Minutes passed before Jake finally broke the silence between them. “What was that about?” he asked, perplexed by Bill's rash behaviour.<br/><br/>“Amy!” Bill said affronted as if her name explained everything but Jake's expression became even more clouded. “Don’t you see! She doesn’t want to hang out with us anymore!” Bill snarled as if it was Jake's fault.<br/><br/>“Whoa! Take a rain check a minute,” Jake profused, “She didn’t say that!”<br/><br/>“She might as well have done,” Bill said, folding his arms against his chest angrily.<br/><br/>“She doesn’t think we need the extra practice anymore. That’s a good thing, Bill!” Jake exclaimed proudly.<br/><br/>“That’s what she says,” Bill replied, his tone still bitter. “It’s just an excuse not to be our friend anymore. I can’t believe her!”<br/><br/>“It’s not, Bill, and you know it. She’s helped us so much, we don’t need extra work now. She’ll still want to play with us and talk to us,” Jake offered calmly, trying to convince himself as much as Bill.<br/><br/>“You really believe that, don’t you?” Bill asked, baffled.<br/><br/>Jake just looked back at him indifferently.<br/><br/>“She’s chosen Kylie over us. Wake up, Jake! The signs couldn’t be more obvious if they were wearing a hat!” Bill ridiculed.<br/><br/>Jake's gaze dropped to the floor as he pondered Bill's words. He wondered if what Bill was saying was the truth. What if Amy really didn’t want to hang out with them anymore? He sighed, a tightness in his chest overwhelming him for several moments.<br/><br/>“So what do we do?” Jake asked.<br/><br/>Bill's expression changed to one of satisfaction and he sat himself down next to Jake. “Just stay with me and do what I do. Got it?”<br/><br/>Jake nodded numbly, wondering if he would regret it.</p><p>—————————</p><p>Gina laughed hysterically throwing a rose red Bertie botts every flavour bean into her open mouth. “You should have seen her face!” she expressed with an abundance of mischief twinkling in her eyes.<br/><br/>Jake and Bill giggled as Rosa too snorted with laughter. Amy sat down to join the group at the table with a plate of homemade cauldron cakes sent to her from her mother. It was the first day all week she had actually sat with them all at breakfast.<br/><br/>“Who’s face?” Amy asked curiously, offering around the plate.<br/><br/>Bill didn’t even look her way, let alone offer a smile and when Jake reached out a hand to take a cauldron cake from the desired plate, Bill kicked him sharply under the table and shook his head briefly as Jake looked at him, apparent pain etched in his face.</p><p>Jake retracted his hand, guilt gleaming in his hazel brown eyes as he quickly pretended to reach for his glass of pumpkin juice on the table instead, but not without missing the look of hurt that consumed Amy’s usual happy complexion.<br/><br/>Gina, done with telling her story, had not missed the odd behaviour between the trio and would not let any drama slide past her radar. She cleared her throat. “Damn guys, you could cut this tension with a knife,” she mused.<br/><br/>“I’d like to,” Rosa said hopefully, drawing a knife from her nearby bag.<br/><br/>“Next time, girl!” Gina said, gesturing for her to put the knife back.<br/><br/>“You always just carry one of them around with you?” Jake asked in wonder.<br/><br/>Rosa nodded.<br/><br/>“She has more than just a knife sweetie,” Gina said affectionately as Jake smiled in awe.<br/><br/>A few beats of awkward silence followed.<br/><br/>“So are you going to tell us what is going on?” Gina raised her concerns again, looking firstly at Bill then long and hard at Amy.<br/><br/>“There’s nothing to tell,” Bill said defensively.<br/><br/>“Well, something has happened. I can smell drama a mile away, and this, this isn’t just a little drama puddle one can step around, this is an ocean and well, I love the ocean,” Gina pushed on excitedly.<br/><br/>“Ask Amy, she's the one who doesn't like us anymore,” Bill said offhandedly. <br/><br/>Amy stood up hurriedly as tears began to make themself known on her cheeks and she suddenly dashed out of the hall without a second look at the group of friends.<br/><br/>Gina watched her go then looked at Bill suspiciously before saying more to herself than any of the others. “What did I say, drama!” she smirked.</p><p>_________________</p><p>The final month of their first year at Hogwarts passed by like a summer's breeze. Bill and Jake barely saw much more of Amy after the incident at breakfast. She did her best to avoid the two boys and in her few classes with them she sat as far away as possible making sure to leave immediately as soon as the class was dismissed.<br/><br/>Jake missed her badly, and so too did Bill, much more than he would let on. However, Bill still firmly believed that she didn’t want anything to do with them anymore. After all, she had been the first to suggest their untimely ending of homework sessions without even asking how they felt about it.<br/><br/>On the final night before they were to return to their homes for the summer, Jake decided to go for a late night wander shortly after curfew around the school. His stomach ached with the growing anxiety of the thought of having not made up with Amy before the term ended and he desperately needed some air from the stuffy Gryffindor common room.<br/><br/>He crept along the corridor on the third floor, his wand tip alight with the use of the spell Lumos which he fondly remembered Amy had taught him.<br/><br/><br/><em>“Lumos!” Jake murmured, his wand tip alighting but to a very dull effect against his chest.<br/></em><br/><em>“You're holding your wand the wrong way round, you absolute goblin!” Amy giggles as she chastised him </em><em>for his inability to cope with even the most basic of wand uses.<br/></em><br/><em>“I was just testing you,” he laughed with her as he turned his wand around.</em></p><p><em>“I’m the one that’s meant to be testing you.” Amy smiled, amusement flickering in her eyes.<br/></em><br/><em>“No, Jake is definitely the one testing us,” Bill interjected, “he’s testing our ability to put up with him.” </em><em>Bill and Amy laughed heartily, the sound filling the old classroom, as if the room itself was alive with the </em><em>sound of their laughter.</em><br/><br/><br/>“Jake!” Amy broke him out of his thoughts as he reached the end of the corridor just outside of the library.<br/><br/>“Amy!” he gasped astounded as he tried to collect his thoughts. “What are you doing here?”<br/><br/>She looked at him then lowered her wand towards the wall, where the dusty writing proclaimed that this door which she had just come from was in fact the library.<br/><br/>“Oh right, of course,” Jake realised.<br/><br/>“The real question is why are you here?” she asked dubiously.<br/><br/>Jake looked at her wistfully, wishing he could bring himself to apologise right now while the opportunity presented itself, but words were failing him.<br/><br/>“And don’t say you were going to the library, because look Jake, we both know you never go anywhere near the library when you can avoid it,” she laughed.<br/><br/>Jake laughed knowingly too, and for half a second it felt like no time had passed and nothing had even changed between them. But then he felt a pang of sorrow as he realised how much he had missed her presence over the past few weeks.<br/><br/>Amy’s smile slowly faltered as Jake's laugh faded and there was an uncomfortable silence.<br/><br/>“Well, uh, night Jake. I hope you have a nice summer,” she said quickly as she passed him and began to head down the corridor.<br/><br/>Jake was startled into silence, before he felt a fear like never before. The fear of losing his friend.<br/><br/>“Amy! Wait!” He ran after her, catching up to her in just a few short strides as she turned to face him.<br/><br/>“I miss you,” he said softly as she looked at him sceptically.<br/><br/>She stayed silent.<br/><br/>“Look, me and Bill, we appreciate everything you did for us and all that, but like you were never just a tutor to us. We saw you as our friend.”<br/><br/>Amy stared back at him accusingly. “What are you saying Jake?”<br/><br/>“Well, it’s just when you said that we were good enough to manage on our own, and you weren’t going to hang out with us anymore like we planned, Bill said you didn’t want to be our friend anymore and you not helping us with our practice because we didn’t need it was just an excuse.” Jake stumbled over his words as relief overtook him while his bottled emotions came spilling out.<br/><br/>“You two thought I didn’t want to be your friend!?” She was confounded for a moment.<br/><br/>Jake shrugged uncertainly.<br/><br/>“I meant what I said! You didn’t need me to work with you anymore. You're both doing as well as the rest of our year. I still wanted to be your friend but I promised Kylie I would work with her for our History of Magic project! I needed all the time I could with her. I can’t believe you two would think I didn’t want to be your friend!” she fumed.<br/><br/>Jake nodded uneasily.</p><p>“I’m sorry,” he whispered, tears dancing at the corners of his eyes.<br/><br/>Amy leaned against the wall as she took it in.<br/><br/>“I’m sorry too.” She looked at him shyly.<br/><br/>“You're not mad at me?” Jake asked anxiously.<br/><br/>“Not anymore. I guess I thought you both just hated me and didn’t want to be my friend anymore. I thought you both used me to get better grades.” She shifted restlessly.<br/><br/>“No way!” Jake said stunned. “You're our friend, and we’ve missed you a lot. We should have told you, but we were just so sure you wanted to replace us.”<br/><br/>“I could never!” Amy smiled. “Kylie is just a house friend, but you and Bill, you're my best friends.”<br/><br/>“And your ours too, Amy.”<br/><br/>“Well, well, well, this might just be your last night in this castle,” sneered a very malicious and joyful voice, that of the caretaker Argus Filch who had just crept up on them out of the darkness.<br/><br/>“For however long that’s going to be,” Jake whispered to Amy quietly horrified.</p>
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<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Chapter 13</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I can’t believe this is happening,” Amy whispered harshly to Jake as they followed Filch down the<br/>corridor to McGonagall’s office, “My parents will be so disappointed with me.”<br/>“You're telling me!” Jake replied bitterly, “I swear I’m on my last strike before I’m out for good.”<br/>They lapsed into silence as their footsteps echoed on the hard stone floors. Both Jake and Amy were<br/>practically jogging as their little legs tried hard to match the long strides taken by the school caretaker in<br/>his eagerness to get students in trouble.<br/>“I have an idea,” Jake pondered, glancing about with a mischievous glint in his eyes.<br/>“What is it, Pineapples?” Amy asked curiously, excitement getting the better of her.<br/>“Only my grandmother calls me that, and I regret telling you now!” Jake growled under his breath.<br/>“Sorry!” Amy giggled, “but seriously if you have a plan to get out of this, now would be a really good<br/>time.”<br/>“I’ll distract him, you run,” Jake suggested.<br/>“That’s your big plan?” Amy raised an eyebrow at Jake as he nodded back hopefully.<br/>“Unless you’ve got anything better, that’s what we’re going with.” Jake crossed his arms stubbornly.<br/>“But what about you?” Amy asked, concern dancing across her brow as she tried to fight the feeling of<br/>abandoning her friend.<br/>“I’ll be alright. My mum will get over it eventually.” He shrugged, pretending not to care and hoping he<br/>looked convincing to Amy. Amy, however, was not buying it.<br/>“You’ll get thrown out!” Amy reprimanded him. ”I have a better idea. I’ll distract him, you run!”<br/>“No way! What about your parents?” Jake eyed her horrified.<br/>“At least I won’t be kicked out. Now go, while we have an opening.” She ushered him to move. Jake did<br/>not go anywhere.<br/>“Go, Jake!” Amy encouraged him again.<br/>”I’m not leaving you. If you're going down, I’m going down with you.”<br/>“Don’t be stupid!” Amy sighed in exasperation.<br/>“I can’t let you get in trouble on your own,” he defended himself, willing her to understand.<br/>“You can,” Amy replied softly, “You can, because I’m telling you to. We didn’t just become friends again<br/>so I can watch your sorry butt get kicked all the way back to London. I don’t want to come back to<br/>Hogwarts next year without you here. So if you have any brain cells, run .... now.”<br/>They exchanged the smallest of smiles, then Jake gave her the briefest of nods in complete gratitude of<br/>his friend. Then before he knew it she moved up to the side of Filch and began badgering him with<br/>questions while Jake himself turned down the corridor and ran like his life depended on it.</p><p>____________________</p><p>The day the students were to travel back home for the summer arrived.<br/>“I’m telling you, this was almost my last day here....” Jake said through a yawn as he and Bill stepped<br/>through the Gryffindor common room portrait hole on their exit route of the castle.<br/>Bill looked at him inquisitively with a small laugh but then his face lost his smile as he turned to look</p><p>down the stairs.<br/>Jake followed his gaze and saw Amy waiting there happily for them both and realisation dawned on him.<br/>“Like I said, you're going to have to talk to her yourself. But trust me, she’s still our friend.” Jake gently<br/>pushed Bill’s back.<br/>“Okay, okay, I’m going,” he said nervously as he carefully made his way towards the staircase. Jake<br/>watched and waited but only a few short seconds passed before Bill turned to face Jake again.<br/>“Can you come with me?” he asked uncertainly.<br/>“I thought you’d never ask!” Jake grinned and caught up to him.<br/>“Hey,” Bill said hesitantly to Amy as he reached her, his eyes drifting to the floor at her feet.<br/>“Hi,” Amy said, almost too casually.<br/>Jake looked between them both. “I’m going to leave you both to it, meet you on the train!” he said<br/>hurriedly dashing off.<br/>Both Bill and Amy looked desperately after him, longing for him to stay but he laughed mockingly<br/>instead. “You're doing fine, you don’t need me here!” he said before darting away outside the entrance<br/>hall door and into the grounds out of sight.<br/>“So did Jake, uh, talk to you about last night?” Amy asked awkwardly.<br/>“Oh yeah, a bit, yeah,” Bill answered in assurance before silence filled the space between them once<br/>more.<br/>“Look, I’m sorry about ....” Amy began.<br/>“I’m sorry about everything....” Bill started at the same time.<br/>They both stopped talking abruptly at once and laughed instead.<br/>“This is so stupid,” Bill said with guilt paramount in his eyes.<br/>“It is,” Amy agreed, still smiling.<br/>Bill grinned back. “Jake told me what you said, and about how this was all just some big<br/>misunderstanding.”<br/>“Yeah, he told me how you felt too. I’m so glad we’re friends again.” Amy beamed.<br/>“You still want to be my friend?? Even after how I acted!??” Bill asked, amazed.<br/>“Of course!” Amy said, shocked that he would assume otherwise. “It was just as much my fault. Of<br/>course, if you don’t want to be my friend....” Amy tailed off, teasing him for a response.<br/>“I do, of course I do!” Bill said quickly, “I missed you Amy.”<br/>“I missed you too. Thank Merlin, Jake sorted us out!” Amy mused with a laugh.<br/>“I know right, what would we do without him,” Bill agreed, marvelling at his friends.<br/>“Come on, let’s go join him on the train!” Amy said.</p><p>_____________________</p><p>“Gina, what’s wrong?” Jake asked Gina as he reached the train and saw her sat on the platform in tears.</p><p>Gina looked at him adoringly as he put his arm around her and sat down beside her. She buried her<br/>head into his shoulder and Jake waited patiently while her tears subsided.<br/>Once Gina's sobs were under control she moved off of Jake and began explaining what had troubled her<br/>so much. Jake listened in great worry as he tried to comprehend what had happened.<br/>“Rosa’s parents have told her not to come home. They’ve told her they never want to see her again and<br/>that a Slytherin could never be their daughter.” Gina's body trembled as new tears rose to the surface in<br/>her blue eyes once more.<br/>“That’s awful,” Jake finally managed as he came to terms with what Gina was telling him.<br/>Gina nodded slowly, “I asked Mum if she could stay with me for the summer because she has nowhere<br/>else to go, but Mum said that she just can’t manage with two kids for this long.”<br/>Jake bit his lip furiously. He felt a deep anger towards Rosa's parents and wished more than anything in<br/>the world he could help her right now.<br/>“Where is she?” Jake asked Gina looking around curiously.<br/>“She’s waiting in the castle until the train leaves.” Gina sniffed back another round of tears. “She said<br/>she’s going to go on the run.”<br/>Gina's voice shook uncontrollably and Jake gave her a small hug in sympathy before standing up and<br/>stepping away from her.<br/>“Where are you going?” Gina asked him, hurt by his sudden movement away from her. She needed him<br/>right now, yet he was about to walk away. She didn’t want him to go.<br/>“I’ll be back, there’s something I have to do!” Jake called over his shoulder to her as he sped away back<br/>up to the castle.<br/>“But, Jake! The train!” Gina called desperately to him.<br/>“Just stall it as much as you can,” Gina caught the end of his sentence as he rushed away. Sighing, she<br/>dropped her head into her hands once more.<br/>Jake ran up the path to the Entrance Hall and bumped into Bill and Amy chatting happily as they made<br/>their way down to the station.<br/>“Where are you going in such a hurry?” Bill questioned him as he ran past.<br/>“Can’t stop, explain later,” Jake gasped between breaths.<br/>“Probably forgot one of his two brain cells,” Amy joked loudly.<br/>“Funny!” Jake yelled at them as he dived towards the entrance and Bill laughed heartily before he and<br/>Amy continued on their way to the station.<br/>Jake skidded across the hall as he ran quickly down the corridor towards the dungeons. He searched the<br/>classrooms down there trying to remember where he had found Rosa before, when suddenly he heard<br/>the familiar sound of glass shattering. He carefully opened the nearest door and walked in cautiously.<br/>There stood Rosa, her hand clutching a glass orb posed to throw it at the opposite wall. However, she<br/>looked round suddenly as she heard the creak of the door upon Jake’s entrance.<br/>“What do you want?” she glared at him, as if she was personally offended by his presence.<br/>“Gina told me about what happened,” Jake began, not really sure how to calm Rosa down in this<br/>instance. He fought hard against the pity swelling in his chest and decided to go with his deeper instincts<br/>and choose words that he wished he himself had heard years earlier when his own Dad abandoned him.<br/>“So she’s a snitch!? And what of it?” Rosa barked angrily at him.</p><p>“She’s not, she’s just worried about you,” Jake said defensively.<br/>Rosa scoffed.<br/>Jake watched her thoughtfully for a moment before continuing.<br/>“People love you, Rosa. You have friends here and people who care. We don’t want to see you hurt.<br/>Your parents will come around, you’ll see, but right now you don’t need them. You're a strong person,<br/>you can be even stronger. Let us help you.” Jake held out his hand, willing her to accept him.<br/>Rosa stared at him, considering his words before batting his hand away. “I don’t do touchy feely crap!”<br/>she growled horrified.<br/>Jake looked slightly affronted as he took a step back.<br/>“But I trust you, Jake,” Rosa said, her gaze upon him so deep he felt like she was almost reading into his<br/>soul.<br/>His heart flowed with a new warmth and respect for his class mate as an understanding passed between<br/>them like no other.<br/>“I can’t stay at the school, what am I supposed to do?” Rosa said stiffly, looking to Jake as if he held all<br/>the answers.<br/>He looked back at her with deep empathy rife in his heart as he wondered how to help her.<br/>“Come home with me and Gina,” Jake said, an idea spinning into his mind.<br/>“Gina already tried,” Rosa said numbly, disappointment surfacing in her eyes.<br/>“I know.” Jake smiled as excitement at his own genius enveloped him.<br/>Rosa looked at him as if questioning his sanity and Jake laughed.<br/>“We can take it in turns! You can spend a week at mine and then a week at Gina’s! That way our parents<br/>don’t have to worry about looking after you the entire summer! And even better it means we get to hang<br/>out with you. We live next door anyway and spend most of our time together. My mum is always working<br/>so Gina can come and hang out with us as much as we like and it’ll be just like we’re all staying together.<br/>It’s going to be so much fun.” Jake's thoughts raced as he looked at Rosa, waiting for approval.<br/>Rosa shrugged, but Jake could see a small smile creeping onto her face.<br/>“I know it’s not home,” Jake said softly.<br/>“It’s great,” Rosa said, reassuring him that she was grateful for the offer.<br/>“At least you don’t have to go on the run, but still sucks though.” Jake shrugged.<br/>“Still sucks though,” Rosa agreed sadly.</p>
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<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Chapter 14</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Jake, Rosie, time for breakfast!” Karen Peralta called up the stairs.<br/><br/>“Coming Mum!” Jake yelled back.<br/><br/>“If she calls me Rosie one more time I swear to god I’m going to learn an unforgivable curse and she’ll be my first victim,” Rosa grunted, throwing a pillow hard at Jake which hit him square in the face.<br/><br/>Jake rubbed his face where the pillow landed then smirked. “And I thought you liked it!” he said before burying himself back under the duvet.<br/><br/>The two had spent the entire first week of the summer at Jake's house, however his Mum had spent very little time there instead choosing to work long hours and disappearing for half the night. She often bought them ready meals and left them to themselves, and this was the first morning all week she had bothered to make breakfast for them. However, this suited Jake and Rosa, it had given them more excuses to spend time with Gina next door who frequently visited. The arrangement worked well for them all as Rosa was to spend the following week at Gina's house anyway.<br/><br/>“If you don’t get up now, I’ll eat your share of breakfast too!” Rosa said standing up from the spare bed and moving over to the door.<br/><br/>Jake had never rolled out of bed quicker. He threw on his hoodie and pushed past her to the stairs. The two charged down, racing each other to the table. Jake almost won too, but Rosa grabbed his hood and flung him into the nearby wall, knocking him off balance and forcing him to lose his momentum.<br/><br/>“Cheat,” Jake said sulkily as he sat down next to her.<br/><br/>“There were no rules. It was just another means to win.” Rosa shrugged as she stabbed a piece of watermelon with a fork.<br/><br/>Jake took a bite of his butter syrup pancakes then flicked on the TV. He sure had missed TV since being away from it for so long but he also realised he could live without it.<br/><br/>“What are you doing?” Rosa stared at him with a look of pure disgust.<br/><br/>Jake looked up at her questioningly as he wondered what had offended her then it dawned on him why she was watching him with such a horrified expression.<br/><br/>“I’m just eating my pancakes.” Jake shrugged, half amused.<br/><br/>“There was no pancake on your fork then. It was all butter and syrup. That’s so gross.” Rosa scrunched her nose up at him.<br/><br/>“It’s nice, you should try it.” Jake offered her some.<br/><br/>“I’ll pass,” Rosa replied as she dropped her fork then moved to sit on the chair furthest away from Jake and his weird eating habits. Her arms were folded across her chest aggressively as Jake’s Mum walked in.<br/><br/>“Hey, kids, I’m off to work,” she said smiling at Jake and Rosa. “I hope you get settled at Gina's place, Rosie, and you’re welcome back here anytime.”<br/><br/>“Okay.” Rosa glared as she gripped the knife handle she was holding then carefully nodded with a half shrug.<br/><br/>Jake coughed warningly.<br/><br/>“Thanks, Mrs Peralta.” She scowled at Jake, before forcing a small smile at his Mum.<br/><br/>“Oh, call me Karen, honey, please.” She beamed.<br/><br/>“Sure.” Rosa shrugged again, a hardened look crossing her face as her eyes dropped to the floor.<br/><br/>“Okay!” Karen said satisfied, then she bent down to kiss Jake on his head gently. “I’ll be back before 10 tonight sweetheart, don’t stay out too late.”<br/><br/>“Bye Mum,” he said, giving her a quick hug.<br/><br/>She waved goodbye to Jake and Rosa then turned and left the house, disappearing down the drive in their family Sudan.</p><p>___________________</p><p>Jake tapped on the door of Gina's household awaiting any sign of life from within. He waited a few short seconds without a response which was enough for Rosa to grow impatient.<br/><br/>“Why don’t we just break the door down?” she suggested, excitement at the prospect of kicking down someone’s door way too obvious.<br/><br/>Jake looked at her, then reached out a hand and carefully turned the door handle to allow himself to walk in. “Or we could just use the door handle?” he said amused.<br/><br/>“Kicking it down would have been more fun though,” Rosa muttered.<br/><br/>“I’m sure you’ll get another chance,” Jake said callously as he led the way down the hallway with Rosa following close behind.<br/><br/>There was no sign of Gina or her Mum as they scoured the ground floor so Jake made his way over to the staircase. As he did so there was a loud bang upstairs and Jake heard a voice yell, “Get it!” while a sudden burst of grey feathers came barrelling towards him hitting him directly in the face. It made him stumble back several paces as he rubbed the spot where it had hit his cheek then he looked down to see Beyoncé, Gina's eagle owl hopping about hopelessly on one leg with one of its wings stretched out<br/>limply.<br/><br/>Carefully Jake bent down to pick her up and check if she was okay, he wasn’t sure how much of a knock such a small creature could take, especially since the side of his own face was stinging like mad. Once Jake's fingers graced the top of her feathers ever so delicately, Beyoncé let out a loud hoot then flapped her wings and zipped out of a nearby open window.<br/><br/>“Drama queen,” Jake mumbled, “just like her owner.”<br/><br/>Curiously, he and Rosa crept up the stairs from where the owl had fledged from and looked around the<br/>second floor for Gina.<br/><br/>At the end of the hallway they could see a doorway propped open slightly to the left and from their position outside the door they could hear Gina and her Mum discussing something in low voices. Jake knocked quietly then let himself and Rosa in.<br/><br/>“Jake! Rosa!” Gina exclaimed happily as her two friends made their presence known in the room.<br/><br/>She hugged Jake and bumped fists with Rosa as her mum stumbled out from under the bed.<br/><br/>“Jake! How good to see you!” Her mum, Darlene, exclaimed as she looked at him fondly before turning to take in Rosa. “And you must be Rosa, I’ve heard so much about you.... I won’t get too close!” she joked with a warm smile.<br/><br/>“I like her,” Rosa grimaced as she admitted her feelings.<br/><br/>Everyone laughed even Rosa, she was grateful in this very moment for her two very best friends and she was almost convinced that they really were her family. Almost.<br/><br/>“What are you both doing up here?” Jake finally asked as he looked around the dusty old room.<br/><br/>“Spring cleaning!” Darlene replied looking around, “or trying anyway. I just found an infestation of Doxies under this bed here. Can you believe it? Doxies in my house? What a nerve!” she stuttered.</p><p>Jake and Gina made eye contact and suppressed the urge to laugh. It was in fact Jake and Gina who had collected the Doxies from an abandoned apartment not too far from their place several summers ago. They had deliberately brought them home that day hoping that one day they could create a disturbance, and it seemed that their plan was finally in motion.<br/><br/>Rosa saw the look exchanged between them and couldn’t help but marvel at the two of them. It’s like they could be twins, she thought. She couldn’t wait for her own adventures with them both in the near future and she hoped they would accept her in on their troublemaking.<br/><br/>“Never mind this just now, anyway. I won’t have Rosa cleaning for us all summer. You three go on and enjoy yourselves. I’ve left pumpkin juice and cauldron cakes for you all downstairs in the kitchen.”<br/><br/>They all thanked her then made their way downstairs. The trio spent the afternoon playing games in the garden and swimming in the garden pool. They had a big roast dinner all together then spent a couple of hours in the late evening watching a display of spells and potions that Darlene showed them, ones that  she deemed safe for the soon to be second years.<br/><br/>Shortly before 10, Jake said his goodbyes then wandered back home next door. He was buzzing from such a fun day with his friends and kind of wished they could all just sleepover together. He made his way into the living room where he curled up on the couch with the TV on and slowly drifted off.<br/><br/>A few hours passed and Jake stirred from where he had fallen asleep on the couch. His eyes looked around blurrily for the wall clock and as his brain tried to process the two small hands indicating how late it was, he realised it was well after 10 and his mum was still not home yet. Again.<br/><br/>He sighed as he pulled a blanket over himself. Since his mum didn’t seem to be coming home anytime soon, he didn’t really have the heart to drag himself up the stairs so instead he made himself more comfortable on the couch and tried to settle back down.<br/><br/>Barely 15 minutes had passed when he finally felt sleepiness overwhelm him again and he began to doze. However, he suddenly heard the bang of a car door outside which made him bolt upright. He listened as he heard footsteps coming up the path and the front door open and close. Soon the light switched on and there was his mum looking directly at him.<br/><br/>“Jake, baby, it’s way past your bedtime,” she said, trying to be stern but failing as she looked at her son's sleepy face.<br/><br/>“You’re home late. Again, Jake said, fighting hard to hide the bitterness in his voice.<br/><br/>“I’m sorry, I had things ..... you know how it is,” she said offhandedly.<br/><br/>“I guess,” he mumbled.<br/><br/>His mum came over to him and sat down. He rested his head against her.<br/><br/>“I’ll make it up to you tomorrow. We can go out shopping. I’m off work as well so I’ll be home with you all day.”<br/><br/>“I’d like that.” Jake beamed back as he snuggled into her side.<br/><br/>“Don’t get comfy just yet, Jakey. I also have a surprise for you,” Karen said standing up.<br/><br/>Jake turned and watched her quizzically as she went back to the front door to open it. She watched Jake's expression change as the door swung open to reveal his surprise. She looked on hopefully, expecting her son's delight. <br/><br/>Jake however stared in disbelief.</p>
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<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Chapter 15</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Hey, Jakey!” Jake's dad beamed at him as he came towards where Jake was sprawled on the sofa.<br/>Jake leapt up from the sofa and stepped back away from him. His dad stopped in his tracks as his eyes<br/>traced over his son in puzzlement and hurt at his reaction.<br/>“Jake, honey, it’s your father,” Karen said, as if that made everything okay, as if her soothing tone could<br/>fill the void between them.<br/>“He’s not,” Jake said bluntly, his eyes dead set on the floor at his own feet.<br/>“Son....” his dad began.<br/>“I’m not your son,” Jake mumbled quietly.<br/>“I've come back, Jake,” his dad said firmly. “I want you to know your mother and I have being seeing<br/>each other again. I want you to know I want to be a part of your life again.” He paused. “Please let me,<br/>son.” He looked at Jake, eyes pleading.<br/>“Call me son one more time!” Jake threatened his eyes drifting to where his father stood across the<br/>room, his temper rising drastically, causing the chandelier above them to vibrate angrily from its hook on<br/>the ceiling and the curtains to begin swaying furiously by the windows.<br/>His parents looked at each other before his mum spoke this time.<br/>“He’s sorry for how he hurt us, baby. But he wants to make everything right.” Karen sighed softly as she<br/>felt the pain her boy was going through.<br/>“Then say it!” Jake demanded scowling at his dad expectantly, but suspiciously.<br/>Roger looked at him in confusion. “Say what?”<br/>“That you’re sorry!” Jake said, determination ablaze in his eyes.<br/>“Jake ....” he replied hesitantly.<br/>“I knew it!” Jake turned on his heel then stormed down the hallway and out of the back door, slamming it<br/>behind him. Tears threatened to spill as he ran down the garden and out into the street.<br/>His dad remained shell shocked as he watched his son leave and he made a move to go after him.<br/>However, Karen put a hand on his shoulder.<br/>“I need to go and talk to him,” Roger said.<br/>“He could be anywhere just now, give him time.”<br/>“I can use a charm to find him, it’s not hard,” he offered.<br/>“You're not using magic on him!” Karen shook her head. “Not on our boy, just wait, let him calm down<br/>and process it all for a while. I’m sure he’s just gone to Gina’s.”<br/>Jake, however, did not make his way to his friend’s house - he couldn’t face any company right now. He<br/>didn’t know where he was going, he just needed to get away. Anywhere would do. Anywhere but home.</p><p>________________</p><p>Jake slowed his pace down to a walk as he reached the end of his road. He walked down to the canal by<br/>the roadside where he found a peaceful little bench down a small dip, out of view of the line of houses<br/>and overlooking the water. He quickly cast an eye around, then quickly made a decision to stop and sit<br/>down there to gather his thoughts and catch his breath.<br/>As he sat down he felt himself shaking uncontrollably, he was so angry. How dare his father show up<br/>there after years without a word to them and expect life to carry on like it was. How dare he expect Jake</p><p>to forgive him for everything he put him through.<br/>He put his head into his arms on the bench table and big wracking sobs overwhelmed him as his<br/>emotions took over.<br/>“Dude!” a voice grunted at him making his head whip up in surprise.<br/>He was met by the sight of his friend Rosa who was now sat opposite him on the bench with what looked<br/>like a mixture of concern and regret on her face.<br/>“Uh...” Jake sniffed shyly, wiping his fresh tears away with his checkered shirt sleeve.<br/>“Why are you out here? It’s the middle of the night, dude,” Rosa questioned him, seemingly unaware of<br/>how uncomfortable he was feeling by her presence. He felt awkward being seen so vulnerable and so<br/>upset, and he wondered if she thought he was weak.<br/>“What are you doing out here?” he replied deflecting the attention away from his current circumstances.<br/>“Gina and I snuck out.” Rosa shrugged as if it was obvious.<br/>“Why?” he asked.<br/>This time it was Rosa's turn to feel uncomfortable. She shifted her position on the bench slightly as she<br/>fought with how to answer her friend.<br/>“Well, Gina, she, uh, saw your dad arrive. She was upset about it and worried for you and then we heard<br/>you shouting and then a door slamming. It was her idea to come and check on you when you didn’t show<br/>up after five minutes. She ... we were worried something happened to you,” she said softly.<br/>Jake smiled affectionately as a wave of appreciation for his friends washed over him.<br/>“Well, I’m okay,” Jake said.<br/>“I see that,” Rosa replied, but remained where she sat.<br/>Jake smirked as Rosa smiled, deep understanding illuminated her face.<br/>The two sat in silence, looking out across the water. Minutes went by before they saw Gina running over<br/>from the other side of the road.<br/>“If you ever run off anywhere without me again, Jacob Peralta, I swear I will curse you into oblivion!” Gina<br/>yelled across the canal before she reached the bridge.<br/>Jake and Rosa laughed simultaneously.<br/>“Sorry, Gines.” Jake hugged her as she sat down next to him. She hugged him back tightly.<br/>“We’re in this together,” Gina said leaning her head on his shoulder, the fear dissipating from her face.<br/>“Family is what you make it. You taught me that,” Rosa added, a gentle, fond, twinkle in her eye Jake<br/>had never seen before in the year they had known each other.<br/>“Check you getting all mushy, girl!” Gina mused as she lifted her head off Jake, her arm still cuddled his<br/>back.<br/>“You don’t repeat that ever!” Rosa warned, a look of deep horror flooding her face suddenly.<br/>Jake and Gina grinned.<br/>“Ever!” She stood up, taking her wand out and pointing it at them.<br/>“You’d get banned from school, we’re under age!” Jake said, his eyes dancing with amusement.<br/>“Try me!” she warned.</p><p>“I think we’re good.” Jake looked to Gina for further reassurance and she nodded quickly.<br/>Rosa sat back down with them, then Gina whipped out some cans of fizzy juice from her bag and<br/>handed them round.<br/>“You always know how to make everything better,” Jake said to Gina, accepting the can and cracking it<br/>open.<br/>“Anything for my baby brother,” Gina said, opening her own can and raising it in the air.<br/>Rosa raised an eyebrow but Jake raised his can in front of himself too. Jake tipped his head slightly at<br/>Rosa, hinting for her to follow suit. She caught on and lifted her arm half heartedly.<br/>“To pretending not to care!” Gina announced.<br/>“I like that,” Jake said in agreement.<br/>“I know you do,” Gina replied.<br/>“To pretending not to care!” they all cheered before taking a sip.<br/>That summer night, hanging out with his friends like nothing had happened, it gave Jake the peace and<br/>happiness he needed to accept the difficult changes to his life which he previously believed he’d never<br/>have to deal with again. Maybe his dad was a jerk, but maybe that doesn't matter, because he has<br/>friends who will love him unconditionally.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is my first work so any comments and suggestions would be appreciated. Will be updated every Sunday.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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